All News

April 18, 2004

Exxon's Flying Tiger Shatters Climb Record

"Do you wanna hear my prediction for how long this will
take?"
That question from Exxon Flying Tiger pilot Bruce Bohannon Saturday
was directed at a bunch of bleary-eyed reporters at Sun-N-Fun in
Lakeland (FL) Saturday. No one responded. Tough crowd.
"Ten minutes."

Just over the morning haze, rumbling along in a T-6 Texan, we
looked over the horizon searching for multiple aircraft, smoke on.
The orange groves below us cast long shadows and the lush green
fields of the Florida countryside resembled patches of a random
patterned quilt. Closing in from our right rear, four additional
T-6 Texans in an unmistakable paint scheme gather up in fingertip
formation. With the morning light bathing the aircraft in serene
colors, and props gleam the telltale lightning bolt reflection from
the sun, each aircraft move to an in-trail formation aesthetically
pleasing to any eye.

Making It A Bit Wider Makes It Thinner And Helps Larger Pilots
Fit In Their Birds

At Sun-N-Fun 2004, Para-Phernalia, booths B-43 and B-70 in
Hangar B has introduced a new version of the popular Mini emergency
parachute to give pilots in cramped cockpits more working room and
comfort. The Mini Softie is an extremely small, lightweight and
comfortable backpack parachute system designed for use in today's
restricted cockpit environments.

HAI President Roy Resavage dispatched letters to Capitol Hill
this week. The letters request help from Members of Congress in
obtaining suspension of the Federal Aviation Administration’s
proposed national air tour rule, the holding of a public hearing on
the issue, thorough analysis of the commercial air tour safety
record, and the possible holding of Congressional oversight
hearings.

RMS Software Inc., makes of Flitesoft™ flight planing
software, Flitesoft Express™ flight planning and moving map
software and Vista™ have released an update to Flitesoft
which includes a cool new feature named "Virtual Flight."

"The Huey is as much an icon of
Vietnam as the Fokker is of the First World War. Rotary-wing
warbirds have their own following - and their own problems, and
they are just now beginning to be noticed. Right now, almost all of
the Hueys in civilian hands are either stuffed and mounted in
museum settings... or being flogged and spurred to new heights
of productivity in those jobs where a civil type certificate is not
a necessity: logging and public service."
Source: ANN's Kevin "Hognose"
O'Brien, discussing the plight of a number of lesser known
"warbirds" seen at today's airshows and flight displays.

Let's raise a glass to the "other" warbirds. I'll admit it,
everybody and his brother loves Mustangs and B-25s, and so do I.
But wars need all kinds of aircraft, and here are a few of the
less-famous, but no less significant, war machines of wars great
and small. (Note to experts: many warplanes have multiple
designations. For these, I've used the ones they saw the most
action under: for most of the more recent US warbirds, this means
the post-1962 codes).